5 C.F.R. Subpart K—Emergency Leave Transfer Program
Title 5 - Administrative Personnel
Source: 64 FR 72253, Dec. 27, 1999, unless otherwise noted.
(a) Purpose. This subpart provides regulations to implement section 6391 of title 5, United States Code, and must be read together with section 6391. Section 6391 of title 5, United States Code, provides that in the event of a major disaster or emergency, as declared by the President, that results in severe adverse effects for a substantial number of employees, the President may direct the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to establish an emergency leave transfer program under which an employee may donate unused annual leave for transfer to employees of his or her agency or to employees in other Executive agencies who are adversely affected by such disaster or emergency. (b) Applicability. This subpart applies to any individual who is defined as an “employee” in 5 U.S.C. 6331(1) and who is employed in an Executive agency. (c) Administration. The head of each agency having employees subject to this subpart is responsible for the proper administration of this subpart. Each Federal agency must establish and administer procedures to permit the voluntary transfer of annual leave consistent with this subpart. In this subpart— Agency means an “Executive agency,” as defined in 5 U.S.C. 105. Disaster or emergency means a major disaster or emergency, as declared by the President, that results in severe adverse effects for a substantial number of employees (e.g., loss of life or property, serious injury, or mental illness as a result of a direct threat to life or health). Emergency leave donor means a current employee whose voluntary written request for transfer of annual leave to an emergency leave transfer program is approved by his or her employing agency. Emergency leave transfer program means a program established by OPM that permits Federal employees to transfer their unused annual leave to other Federal employees adversely affected by a disaster or emergency, as declared by the President. Emergency leave recipient means a current employee for whom the employing agency has approved an application to receive annual leave from an emergency leave transfer program. Employee has the meaning given that term in 5 U.S.C. 6331(1). Family member has the meaning given that term in §630.902. Leave year has the meaning given that term in §630.201. Paid leave status under subchapter I has the meaning given that term in §630.902. (a) When directed by the President, OPM will establish an emergency leave transfer program that permits an employee to donate his or her accrued annual leave to employees of the same or other Executive agencies who are adversely affected by such a disaster or emergency. (b) OPM will notify agencies of the establishment of an emergency leave transfer program for a specific disaster or emergency, as declared by the President. Once notified, each agency affected by the disaster or emergency is authorized to do the following: (1) Determine whether, and how much, donated annual leave is needed by affected employees; (2) Approve leave donors and/or leave recipients in their agencies, as appropriate; (3) Facilitate the distribution of donated annual leave from approved leave donors to approved leave recipients within their agencies; and (4) Determine the period of time for which donated annual leave may be accepted for distribution to approved leave recipients. (c) A leave bank established under subchapter IV of chapter 63 of title 5, United States Code, and subpart J of part 630 may, with the concurrence of the leave bank board established under §630.1003, donate annual leave to an emergency leave transfer program administered by the leave bank's employing agency. (a) An employee who has been adversely affected by a disaster or emergency may make written application to his or her employing agency to become an emergency leave recipient. If an employee is not capable of making written application, a personal representative of the potential leave recipient may make written application on his or her behalf. (b) An employee who has a family member who has been adversely affected by a disaster or emergency may also make written application to his or her employing agency to become an emergency leave recipient. An emergency leave recipient may use donated annual leave to assist an affected family member, provided such family member has no reasonable access to other forms of assistance. (c) For the purpose of this subpart, an employee will be considered to be adversely affected by a major disaster or emergency if the disaster or emergency has caused severe hardship to the employee or a family member of the employee to such a degree that the employee's absence from work is required. (d) The employee's application must be accompanied by the following information concerning each potential leave recipient: (1) The name, position title, and grade or pay level of the potential emergency leave recipient; (2) A statement describing his or her need for leave from the emergency leave transfer program; (3) Any additional information that may be required by the potential leave recipient's employing agency. (e) Agencies may administratively determine a time period by which employees must apply to become an emergency leave recipient after the occurrence of a major disaster or emergency. (a) The potential emergency leave recipient's employing agency will review the application to become a leave recipient under procedures established by the employing agency for the purpose of determining that the potential leave recipient is or has been affected by the major disaster or emergency. (b) If the application is approved, the employing agency must notify the leave recipient (or his or her personal representative) within 10 calendar days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays) after the date the application was received (or the date the employing agency established its administrative procedures, if that date is later). (c) If the application is not approved, the employing agency must notify the applicant (or the personal representative who made application on behalf of the potential emergency leave recipient) within 10 calendar days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays) after the date the application was received (or the date the employing agency establishes its administrative procedures, if that date is later). The agency must give the reasons for its disapproval. (d) An approved emergency leave recipient is not required to exhaust his or her accrued annual and sick leave before receiving donated leave under the emergency leave transfer program. (a) An employee may voluntarily submit a written request to his or her employing agency that a specified number of hours of his or her accrued annual leave, consistent with the limitations in paragraph (b) of this section, be transferred from his or her annual leave account to an emergency leave transfer program established under §630.1103(b). An emergency leave donor may not donate annual leave for transfer to a specific emergency leave recipient under this subpart. (b) An emergency leave donor may not contribute less than 1 hour nor more than 104 hours of annual leave in a leave year. Each agency may establish written criteria for waiving the 104-hour limitation on donating annual leave in a leave year. (c) Annual leave donated under this subpart may not be applied against the limitations on the donation of annual leave under the voluntary leave transfer or leave bank programs established under 5 U.S.C. 6332 and 6362, respectively. (d) An emergency leave recipient may receive a maximum of 240 hours of donated annual leave at any one time from an emergency leave transfer program for each disaster or emergency. (e) Each emergency leave recipient must use the donated annual leave for purposes related to the disaster or emergency for which the emergency leave recipient was approved. (f) Annual leave transferred under this subpart may be— (1) Substituted retroactively for any period of leave without pay used because of the adverse effects of the disaster or emergency; or (2) Used to liquidate an indebtedness incurred by the emergency leave recipient for advance annual or sick leave used due to the adverse effects of the disaster or emergency. An agency may advance an emergency leave recipient annual or sick leave, as appropriate (even if the employee has available annual and sick leave), so that the emergency leave recipient is not forced to use his or her accrued leave before donated annual leave becomes available. (g) While an emergency leave recipient is using donated annual leave from an emergency leave transfer program, annual and sick leave will accrue to the credit of the employee at the same rate as if the employee were in a paid leave status under subchapter I of chapter 63 of title 5, United States Code, and will be subject to the limitations imposed by 5 U.S.C. 6304(a), (b), (c), and (f) at the end of the leave year in which the transferred annual leave is received. (h) Annual leave transferred under this subpart may not be— (1) Included in a lump-sum payment under 5 U.S.C. 5551 or 5552; (2) Made available for recredit under 5 U.S.C. 6306 upon reemployment by a Federal agency; or (3) Used to establish initial eligibility for immediate retirement or acquire eligibility to continue health benefits into retirement under 5 U.S.C. 6302(g). (i) Agencies are responsible for ensuring that annual leave donated under the emergency leave transfer program is used appropriately. (a) If an agency does not receive sufficient amounts of donated annual leave to meet the needs of approved emergency leave recipients within the agency, the agency may contact OPM for assistance. The agency must notify OPM of the total amount of donated annual leave needed for transfer to its approved emergency leave recipients. OPM will solicit and coordinate the transfer of donated annual leave from other Federal agencies to affected agencies who may have a shortfall of donated annual leave. OPM will determine the period of time for which donations of accrued annual leave may be accepted for transfer to affected agencies. (b) Each Federal agency contacted by OPM for the purpose of providing donated annual leave to an agency in need will— (1) Approve leave donors under the conditions specified in §630.1106(a) and (b) and determine how much donated annual leave is available for transfer to an affected agency; (2) Maintain records on the amount of leave donated by each emergency leave donor to the emergency leave transfer program (for the purpose of restoring unused transferred annual leave under §630.1108(c)); (3) Report the total amount of annual leave donated to the emergency leave transfer program to OPM; and (4) When OPM has accepted the donated annual leave, debit the amount of annual leave donated to the emergency leave transfer program from each emergency leave donor's annual leave account. (c) OPM will notify each affected agency of the aggregate amount of donated annual leave that will be credited to the agency for transfer by the agency to its approved emergency leave recipient(s). The affected agency will determine the amount of donated annual leave to be transferred to each emergency leave recipient (an amount that may vary according to individual needs). (d) The affected agency must credit the annual leave account of each approved emergency leave recipient as soon as possible after the date OPM notifies the agency of the amount of donated annual leave that will be credited to the agency under paragraph (b) of this section. (e) Any annual leave donated to an emergency leave transfer program that is not used by the approved emergency leave recipients will be returned by OPM to the donating agencies for restoring to their emergency leave donors under §630.1108(b). The donating agencies must determine the amount of donated annual leave to be returned to each of their emergency leave donors consistent with the provisions in §630.1108(c). (a) The disaster or emergency affecting an emergency leave recipient terminates— (1) When the employing agency or OPM determines that the disaster or emergency has terminated; (2) When the emergency leave recipient's Federal service terminates; (3) At the end of the biweekly pay period in which the emergency leave recipient, or his or her personal representative, notifies the employing agency that he or she is no longer affected by such disaster or emergency; (4) At the end of the biweekly pay period in which the employing agency determines, after written notice from the agency and an opportunity for the emergency leave recipient or his or her personal representative to answer orally or in writing, that the emergency leave recipient is no longer affected by such disaster or emergency; or (5) At the end of the biweekly pay period in which the emergency leave recipient's employing agency receives notice that OPM has approved an application for disability retirement for the emergency leave recipient under the Civil Service Retirement System or the Federal Employees' Retirement System, as appropriate. (b) When a disaster or emergency affecting an emergency leave recipient is terminated, any annual leave donated to an emergency leave transfer program that is not used by an approved emergency leave recipient must be returned to the emergency leave donors. The amount of remaining annual leave to be returned to each emergency leave donor must be proportional to the amount of annual leave donated by the employee to the emergency leave transfer program for such disaster or emergency. Annual leave donated to an emergency leave transfer program for a specific disaster or emergency may not be transferred to another emergency leave transfer program established for a different disaster or emergency. (c) Under procedures established by the donating agency, the agency will determine the amount of annual leave returned under paragraph (b) of this section to be restored to each of the emergency leave donors who, on the date leave restoration is made, is employed by a Federal agency. At the election of the emergency leave donor, unused transferred annual leave restored to the emergency leave donor may be restored by— (1) Crediting the restored annual leave to the emergency leave donor's annual leave account in the current leave year; or (2) Crediting the restored annual leave to the emergency leave donor's annual leave account effective as of the first day of the following leave year. (a) An employee may not directly or indirectly intimidate, threaten, or coerce, or attempt to intimidate, threaten, or coerce, any other employee for the purpose of interfering with any right such employee may have with respect to donating, receiving, or using annual leave under this subpart. (b) For the purpose of paragraph (a) of this section, the term “intimidate, threaten, or coerce” includes promising to confer or conferring any benefit (such as appointment or promotion or compensation) or effecting or threatening to effect any reprisal (such as deprivation of appointment, promotion, or compensation).
Title 5: Administrative Personnel
PART 630—ABSENCE AND LEAVE
Subpart K—Emergency Leave Transfer Program
§ 630.1101 Purpose, applicability, and administration.
§ 630.1102 Definitions.
§ 630.1103 Establishment of an emergency leave transfer program.
§ 630.1104 Application to become an emergency leave recipient.
§ 630.1105 Approval of application to become an emergency leave recipient.
§ 630.1106 Limitations on donation and use of annual leave.
§ 630.1107 Governmentwide transfer of emergency leave.
§ 630.1108 Termination of disaster or emergency.
§ 630.1109 Prohibition of coercion.
